Blind Inspirationcast Inspirations

Colleen ventures into the Guitar Dungeon of Assistive Technology Banter, or the AT Banter podcast of Rob Mineault, Ryan Fleury, and Steve Barclay. Their goal is to provide a balanced and entertaining look at AssistiveTechnology, Accessibility and its importance in people’s lives.  These fine gentlemen contacted Colleen to discuss her visual impairment, social perspective, and […]

In this podcast, Colleen speaks of her journey at The Seeing Eye where she obtained her very first guide dog, Joplin. She had the honor of meeting Cheryl Green, and advocate in the disability community. In addition to this podcast please go and listen to the story of an honest love between a blind woman […]

Hi, listeners!  As usual, thank you for your patience and interest. Colleen is enjoying making videos with new Seeing Eye Dog Joplin so much she has decided to continue them on a regular basis! Podcasts will return periodically so keep an eye. Email us with any suggestions for podcast topics. If you enjoy Colleen though, check out […]

Colleen is getting a guide dog! She is sharing this experience on a video blog instead of her podcast. Check out her first 3 vlogs on YouTube here. Subscribe to her channel and select the bell icon to be notified when she adds a new video. She will be continuing her podcast after this adventure, […]

Colleen was contacted by Defacto Sound, which is a Sound Studio in MD, USA.  Proprietor Dallas interviews her regarding her life in the visual world, and her thoughts on Audio Description.  This is a fascinating look into the world of a sighted sound engineer talking to a blind sound-lover. Our goal is to further the […]

It’s finally here!  Voting 2016…how was it for you?  Colleen describes her accessible voting experience (or lack thereof).  She also announces her upcoming collaboration with Comics Empower! Survey for Blind Voter Feedback Listen to Colleen’s past podcasts about voting in 2014 and about voting in 2012. Email: blindinspirationcast@gmail.com Or tweet us @inspirationcast Subscribe on iTunes Subscribe […]

In this episode Colleen talks about the importance of advocacy in the visually impaired community.  Especially going over her own experience obtaining an Accessible Pedestrian Signal (APS) in her hometown.  Safety and independence are so important to the blind community, and travel is a huge part of that.  Let’s cross some streets! APS Technical Specifications […]

Colleen is back with several updates about her life, some advice about turning on the accessibility settings on a smart phone, and a peek into the app TapTapSee. TapTapSee is a camera app for the blind and vision impaired that allows you to take a photo of anything and have it described for you in […]

In this episode Colleen talks about her experience giving a museum tour to a deaf blind gentleman.  He can’t see or hear, and she can’t see or sign…what happened?  Tune in to find out this insightful story. Happy Birthday to Helen Keller, too.   Have you interacted with a deaf blind person?  As someone who […]

Colleen returns after her big move with a big topic. Inspired by a podcast from How Stuff Works, Colleen discusses the concept of desexualizing people with disabilities. She goes into the history of disability rights in the US, social psychology, and gives her perspective on why a lot of the world doesn’t accept individuals with […]

Colleen and Alyssa do an audio description movie review of Mad Max Fury Road!  Note that this film is rated R for violence and explosions, but it ends up being a great example of how to view a film that is almost all AD and very little dialogue.  In need of some heavy metal, car […]

Colleen returns from establishing her new joint venture, Audio Description Training Retreats, to discuss Marvel Movie-verse accessibility with Alyssa and Cheryl! Hear how video description has entered the Marvel world from Iron Man 1 to Deadpool . What is your experience with audio description in mainstream Hollywood films? Have a good or bad example of description? […]

So you’ve heard Colleen talk about 20 Awesome Things about being Visually Impaired. Now it’s time to hear some reasons why it might not be so awesome.  Hear about the actual woes of the visually impaired, presented with plenty of humor of course. Colleen references the Vending Machine Episode as well.   Have your own? Email: blindinspirationcast@gmail.com […]

How does a blind person order at a restaurant? Colleen recently talked with Sophie Trist, who took on the task of brailing many menus for restaurants in her home town. Find out what prompted her interest and what her experience was like. Download the Transcript for Episode 34   Have you used or ever been […]

Apologies for the mistakenly re-released previous episode. This is a completely new podcast episode. Colleen discusses the art of Audio Description and the service it provides for the blind and vision impaired. She touches on where it comes from, how to get it, and her own experiences using the service. Also, she announces a new […]

By listener request, Colleen speaks about The Hadley School for the Blind and her experience learning Braille through their free courses. She also touches on what this special code is and how one would read it. Tune in to hear the basics, benefits, and bumps! Reference Links: The Hadley School for the Blind Braille Translator […]

Colleen gives her take on how people with visual impairments and color blindness perceive and relate to colors as the sighted world knows them. She’s not a scientist or a doctor, but Colleen touches on the uniqueness of every person’s eyes, society’s naming of colors, and why it is worth it to describe color to […]

This episode follows Colleen’s series in Alternative Treatments for Depression regarding physical and mental illnesses. No matter who you are, if you are interested in meditation and mindful practices to de-stress your everyday life, listen in! People haven’t been doing this for thousands of years for no reason…what’s the secret here? Listen to Part 1 and Part 2. […]

In this podcast Cheryl joins Colleen to discuss a recently coined phrase “inspiration porn.” Not bashing anyone who posts pictures of inspiring people who struggle with challenges, but questioning the real motives. The concept that people with disabilities are required to inspire those who don’t have any. That meme that brightens your day because you realize you don’t […]

In this fun-filled American jaunt, Colleen discusses the process of how visually impaired and blind people vote at the polls. Her own experience provides criticism, cynicism, and civicism! Learn how you can help the visually impaired vote confidentially and successfully! Referenced Links: American Federation for the Blind – Voting Machines Colleen’s last podcast on voting […]